Out of Autoclave
All-Composite Platforms?
Gibson describes how a team representing the Centre for Composite Materials Engineering, MSP (formerly Maunsell Structural Plastics, Beckenham, Kent, U.K.) and Odebrecht Oil and Gas, a Brazilian-owned platform fabrication company, were tasked with redesigning the topside of BP’s small, minimum-facility Davy-Be
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Design Issues With Tendons
A composite tendon is essentially a rope made from small-diameter rods, which are pultruded with carbon fiber. Multiple rods are gathered together and twisted slightly to form a strand, using typical wire rope stranding methods. Depending on the performance requirements, 10 to 40 strands, about 2 to 3 inches/5
Read MoreSome Design Issues
A variety of resins can be used for offshore applications, depending on the requirements for the final product. General-purpose polyester offers a low-cost option that provides greater corrosion resistance than steel. Isophthalic polyester provides somewhat better corrosion resistance, while vinyl ester is pre
Read MorePetrobras Pioneers Topside Composites
Petrobras (Rio de Janeiro, Brazil) was the first major oil company to experiment with molded gratings in the 1980s, though these early products proved unsatisfactory due to wide variations in mechanical properties. However, advances in pultrusion and filament winding technology coupled with the availability of
Read MoreComposite Tether Goes To Sea
Conoco and KOP have manufactured a prototype of a carbon fiber composite tether that could extend TLP production to depths exceeding 10,000 ft/3,000 m. The design has undergone extensive static testing and fatigue loading and has been verified through hydrodynamic model testing. Sea testing is being planned.
Read MoreFiber Reinforcement Types
Because small-diameter filaments are extremely fragile, they are supplied in bundles. The terminology for identifying these bundles varies, based on the type of fiber. Glass and aramid fiber bundles are called strands, rovings or yarns. In current usage, a “strand” is a collection of continuous filaments and a
Read MoreSubsea Wellhead And Pipeline Protection Covers
Wellhead and pipeline protection covers are required under the Norsok regulations for subsea installations in the Norwegian sector (Standard U-002, Subsea Structures and Piping System). Traditional steel wellhead covers are very large — often more than 50 ft/15m square — to allow ROVs access to the Christmas t
Read MoreComposite Trusses For Large Structures?
Ebert Composites Corp. (Chula Vista, Calif., U.S.A.) is marketing a composite truss concept for large structures that has potential for offshore application. Since 1992, the company has focused on the development of large, all-composite lattice-type power transmission towers to replace galvanized steel towers.
Read MoreLooking Forward
Current composite tether designs are leveraged to take advantage of existing oil-field manufacturing facilities. The wirerope stranding facilities, umbilical closing machines, steel anchors and installation methods used today for steel and synthetic cables can immediately accommodate rope-style composite tethe
Read MoreDownhole Composites Boost Durability, Drillability
Halliburton Energy Services, Schlumberger Oilfield Services, Weatherford International, and Baker Oil Tools, all based in Houston, Texas (U.S.A.), offer composite downhole tools — made with both thermoplastics and thermoset resins — for a variety of applications. Halliburton’s FasDrill packers and plugs
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